After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

"Day in the Life of a Tudor Executioner"

Hosts: Anthony Delaney & Maddy Pelling
Date: November 10, 2025

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode takes listeners into the little-explored world of the Tudor executioner. Historians Anthony Delaney and Maddy Pelling explore the day-to-day realities of these shadowy figures, examining who they were, how they were chosen, their social status, and what actually happened on execution day. The show moves beyond the infamous deaths themselves to spotlight the people—often marginalized—who enacted the bloody will of the Tudor state.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Ubiquity and Brutality of Tudor Executions

• Executions were a routine threat in Tudor times, with a broad array of crimes punishable by death, especially under Henry VIII (05:10).
• Quote:
  “Treason, heresy, rebellion, counterfeiting, murder, rape, robbery, bestiality, sodomy, witchcraft… These are things that are being taken from ecclesiastical hands at this point into a more formalized legal system.” — Anthony Delaney (05:10)

2. Methods of Execution

• Beheading (axe/sword) was reserved for high-status victims; hangings, burnings, boilings, and even ear removals were also practiced (06:08–13:42).
• Physical suffering was intentionally minimized (or not) depending on crime and status.
• Memorable Moment:
  Maddy and Anthony joke about the grisly choice between being burned or boiled alive, using dark humor to underline the period’s brutality (06:51).

3. The Executioner: Position, Stigma, and Recruitment

• Executioners formed a necessary yet reviled class—simultaneously wielded as instruments of power and shunned by polite society (09:40–11:44).
  • Recruitment often targeted criminals offered clemency in exchange for taking on the role.
  • Sometimes the job was inherited, passed from father to son.
• Many European cities (e.g., Nuremberg) explicitly banned executioners from public spaces (10:58).
• Quote:
  “This person was seen as being a weapon of state ... but at the same time they were also seen as being on the periphery...” — Anthony Delaney (09:40)

4. Economic Realities: Pay, Perks, and Side Hustles

• Payments were typically per execution (especially in London) or by salary outside major cities (14:25–15:44).
• Executioners earned extra by selling victims’ clothes and sometimes accepting bribes for a swift or less painful death (15:45–16:29).
• Executioners often also operated torture devices or acted as gravediggers, further emphasizing their marginalized role (12:23–13:28).
• Quote:
  “Tudor England is very much a gig economy in that sense… you might be asked to operate the torture devices.” — Anthony Delaney (12:23)

5. A Day in the Life at the Tower

• Executions at the Tower of London typically happened at dawn, attended by important officials (the Constable or Lieutenant of the Tower) (17:16–19:29).
• Scaffold construction was temporary, and only a select few (22 in total) were executed inside the Tower’s walls (20:13–21:00).
• Famous prisoners were executed inside for privacy and crowd control.
• Quote:
  “It’s just something so tangible and yet malleable about it. I just think it’s the most fascinating object from history, really...” — Maddy Pelling, on the scaffold (23:01)

6. The Process and Ceremony of Execution

• Executioners prioritized speed and efficiency, unlike later centuries where spectacle mattered more (23:20–24:46).
• Tools (axes, swords) were provided by the state, emphasizing that executions were a state function (23:58–24:00).
• “Headline” victims (e.g., Anne Boleyn) received special procedures, sometimes foreign executioners (Calais swordsman).
• Rituals included seeking forgiveness from the condemned and managing the emotional choreography of the event (26:18–27:28).
• Quote:
  “If you’re able to keep it [your dignity] away by keeping your hair away ... it’s still taking ownership over the end of your life.” — Anthony Delaney (26:18)

7. Post-Execution Duties and Staging

• The executioner would display the head (“Behold, the head of a traitor!”) as proof (31:14).
• They often had to control crowds, prevent relic-collecting, deliver possessions, and even coordinate rapid burials (32:29–33:32).
• Display of heads on London Bridge was common as a public warning (33:13–33:32).

8. Myths, Misdeeds, and Mishaps: Infamous Cases

• Margaret Pole (1541):
  A botched execution by a “blundering youth,” not the usual executioner, left her hacked to pieces (34:37–36:53).
  • Quote:
    “A wretched and blundering youth ... who literally hacked her head and shoulders to pieces in the most pitiful manner.” — Anthony Delaney (via Eustace Chapuy) (36:12)
• Anne Boleyn:
  A special French swordsman was imported for her beheading; many dignified touches (hair pinned, hidden sword) and subsequent lore surrounding the event (37:45–39:21).
• Thomas Derrick:
  Famous executioner, once a criminal, became known for his efficiency and ruthlessness—“Derrick” became slang for gallows (43:44–44:38).
• Final beheading at the Tower: Simon Fraser, 1747; the block is still on display (45:16–45:48).

9. Humanity and Legacy of the Executioner

• Executioners did not wear the classic black hood; they dressed like everyone else and were widely recognized (33:42–34:12).
• The proximity of execution instruments (blocks, blades) in museums evokes a visceral connection to history and its brutality (46:00–46:36).
• Executions shaped the façades of power, with executioners operating as both agents of and scapegoats for the state.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the blurred honor of death types:
  “The closer the weapon of death is to natural elements, the less honourable it was... But if you’re being beheaded with a man made blade, there’s more honor in that.” — Anthony Delaney (07:46)
• On executing efficiently:
  “You want to take you from your cell to having your head off ... in 10, 20 minutes. The whole thing done in that kind of attack.” — Anthony Delaney (23:36)
• On the dark business of death: “There is a real opportunity here for additional income ... [like] selling the stories.” — Anthony Delaney (16:29)
• On the executioner’s visible role:
  “You just blend from normal society into this role and then back into normal society because they’re just in their normal clothes.” — Anthony Delaney (33:44)
• Margaret Pole’s botched end:
  “A wretched and blundering youth ... who literally hacked her head and shoulders to pieces in the most pitiful manner.” (36:12)
• On controlling the narrative post-execution:
  “Because it’s pointless if they can’t control the narrative. That’s the whole point. Of executing somebody.” — Anthony Delaney (32:30)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:03–02:58 — Opening narration and setting the tone
• 05:10 — Reasons for execution under Henry VIII
• 06:08–07:16 — Methods of execution (axe, sword, hanging, burning, boiling)
• 09:40–10:46 — Social position and recruitment of executioners
• 12:23–13:28 — The “gig economy”: torture devices, grave digging, and other duties
• 15:03–16:29 — Pay, clothing/jewelry sales, and bribery for humane deaths
• 17:16–19:29 — The executioner’s day and location, Tower of London logistics
• 20:13–21:00 — Only 22 executions ever inside the Tower of London
• 23:20–24:46 — The ceremony, the state-supplied axe, and speed of the act
• 24:49–27:28 — Interaction with the condemned, forgiveness ritual, and executioner etiquette
• 31:14–33:32 — Displaying the head, manipulating the crowd, and managing relics
• 34:37–36:53 — Margaret Pole’s “blundering youth” execution
• 37:45–39:21 — Anne Boleyn: imported executioner, ceremonial details
• 43:44–44:38 — Thomas Derrick and the criminal-to-executioner pipeline
• 45:16–45:48 — Final beheading at the Tower of London and execution artifacts
• 46:00–46:36 — Reflections on seeing execution tools in museums

Tone & Language

• Conversational, occasionally darkly humorous (“You always complain about being too warm, so please don’t boil me alive.” – 07:16)
• Blunt about gore, but sensitive to the significance of the subject matter (“It’s meant to be dignified on both sides. Even though it’s a brutal, brutal thing.” – 37:05)
• Blends deep scholarship with lively banter (“Do you think you could do a job like that in the past?” – 09:25)

Conclusion

This episode navigates the gruesome, complex, and socially fraught world of Tudor executioners—those little-remembered agents of the state who existed simultaneously as outcasts and the sovereign's enforcers. Through vivid storytelling, detailed case studies, and pointed reflection on material remains (from structures to swords), Anthony Delaney and Maddy Pelling leave listeners with a nuanced appreciation for the machinery and meaning of death in Tudor England.

For more on history's dark side, past episodes include explorations of Anne Boleyn, Mary Queen of Scots, and even the working life of famous 20th-century executioner Albert Pierrepoint.